From the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB):
IDB Backs Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative
The Inter-American Development Bank has endorsed the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI), which encourages governments and companies to disclose revenues and payments generated by oil, gas, and mining industries.
The endorsement was approved today by the IDB’s Board of Executive Directors.
EITI is a global initiative to […]

From the UN Environment Programme (UNEP):
A Strong Impact is Made on the Amazonia by its Economic Growth Model

However, responses by the governments of Amazonian countries indicate that efforts are under way on concrete action to deal with their environmental challenges.
The population is increasing, reaching a level of 33.5 million inhabitants in 2007.
Cities grew at an […]

Right now, until 05 February, environmental groups across Brazil are electing their representatives on the National Environment Council (Conselho Nacional do Meio Ambiente – CONAMA).
The more than 500 environment nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) in the Environment Ministry’s (MMA) National Registry of Environmental Entities (Cadastro Nacional de Entidades Ambientalistas – CNEA) are voting for which individuals will […]

Last month a GEO for the Southern Cone Common Market (MERCOSUR or MERCOSUL) was finally unveiled with much fanfare by representatives of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) at the meeting of MERCOSUR Environment Ministers.
What’s a GEO? It’s probably the best known type of comprehensive environmental diagnosis available. “GEO” was the acronym for “Global Environment […]

Minas Gerais, Brazil’s second most populous state and one of its mining, metals and agriculture powerhouses, is pretty proud of its recent accomplishments in waste policy and management. I’ve chronicled here a couple of their steps, such as the modernized inspection/enforcement regime and the creation of the Waste Reference Center (CMRR). But that only touches […]

Last year I blogged about how the Brazilian state of Minas Gerais was giving its environment inspectors the digital tools they need to make their jobs easier.
Since then I have kept one eye on Minas and the inspectors of its State Environment System (Sisema), not only because of the changes in enforcement that they are […]

Quite a few Temas Blog readers noticed the absence of new posts for several weeks. I was fully occupied with work day-and-night on the final stages of the total revamp and re-launch of my main site, temasactuales.com Although work continues on the Spanish and Portuguese versions (coming soon!), the burden has lightened enough […]

With much fanfare a collection of Brazil’s Ministers — Environment (MMA), Agrarian Development (MDA), Agriculture (MAPA) — and the chief of President Lula’s Civil Cabinet held a joint press conference a few weeks ago to announce the latest deforestation data and projections for the Brazilian Amazon (“Amazônia Legal” as Brazil calls it, comprises 9 states […]

In June Amazonas became the first Brazilian state to adopt a state law on climate change, together with one creating a State System of Conservation Units (UCs). The laws were widely praised by nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) working on environment and conservation issues. A Greenpeace spokesman even declared them to be “almost visionary, but […]